Stevens: NCAA Tournament 'as much fun as it gets'

Stevens: NCAA Tournament 'as much fun as it gets'

There are only four NCAA men’s basketball coaches who are feeling pretty good now that the field is down to its Final Four teams.

Boston Celtics coach Brad Stevens knows all too well what that feels like having led Butler to a pair of NCAA national runner-up finishes.

But he’s also been among the coaches whose club came up short in the tournament.

Stevens has clearly moved on from his days of coaching in college, but there aspects of the college game that he admittedly misses – especially this time of year.

“I feel like I’m really lucky to have had that run and to have been able to live it,” Stevens told reporters prior to tonight’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers. “And I really appreciate for the people that are going through it whether it’s the people I know really well or don’t, them living it.

Stevens added, “Those three weeks are as much fun as it gets as far as getting ready to prepare for the next game and everything that goes with it, if you’re lucky enough to advance.”

While most remember Stevens leading the Butler Bulldogs to back-to-back appearances in the national championship game, he also remembers those years when they didn’t advance as deep into the NCAA Tournament.

“It’s just the worst if you come close,” he said. “Especially when you come close to advancing into the next weekend. I’ve lived it where you’re close in a round of 32 game and you don’t quite make it. Those are hard moments. But it is a lot of fun to compete in.”

Three of Stevens’ teams at Butler did not make it past the second round of the playoffs, but he advanced to the NCAA championship game in 2010 and 2011 where they lost to Duke and Connecticut, respectively.

During his six seasons as Butler’s head coach, Stevens had a record of 166-49 with five NCAA Tournament appearances.

Ainge: 'Setback' wrong word to use about Hayward

Ainge: 'Setback' wrong word to use about Hayward

When Danny Ainge says, "You know what? Sometimes I talk too much," Ainge told the Boston Herald over the weekend. "'Setback' wasn't the right word, so let me rephrase that because it's not exactly true to say it - or say it that way.

The Celtics president of basketball operations, in his weekly radio interview with Toucher and Rich on 98.5 The Sports Hub and simulcast on NBC Sports Boston, used that word when he was describing how Gordon Hayward is coming along in his recovery.

"He had like one setback for a couple of weeks, maybe a month and a half ago," Ainge said on the radio last week. "We were progressing a little bit too fast, we thought."

Ainge clarified that to the Herald's Steve Bulpett.

"What happened is he went on the AlterG [anti-gravity treadmill] the first day and he felt some soreness," he said. "It was the first day he tried the AlterG, a long time ago. He just wasn't ready for it at that point. That's all it was."

Chest pains and lack of sleep lead to medical leave for Cavs coach Lue

Chest pains and lack of sleep lead to medical leave for Cavs coach Lue

CLEVELAND - Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue is taking a leave of absence from the team to address health issues that have included chest pains and loss of sleep.

Lue said Monday in a statement that tests have offered no conclusion about what the issue is and offered no timetable for his return. The coach said he feels he needs to step away "and focus on trying to establish a stronger and healthier foundation" from which to coach the rest of the season.

I have had chest pains and other troubling symptoms, compounded by a loss of sleep, throughout the year. Despite a battery of tests, there have been no conclusions as to what the exact issue is.

"While I have tried to work through it, the last thing I want is for it to affect the team. I am going to use this time to focus on a prescribed routine and medication, which has previously been difficult to start in the midst of a season," Lue said. "My goal is to come out of it a stronger and healthier version of myself so I can continue to lead this team to the championship we are all working towards."

A stress-filled season for the Cavs has taken a toll on the Lue, 40, a former Celtics assistant under Doc Rivers who led them to the 2016 NBA championship after taking over for David Blatt midway through that season. They are j40-29, third in the Eastern Conference, behind the second-place Celtics and East-leading Toronto Raptors, and have endured roster shake-ups, injuries and other distractions as they try to return to the NBA Finals.

David Aldridge of TNT reports that the plan is for Lue to return in a week. The NBA playoffs begin April 14.

Tyronn Lue will be on a one-week plan to address his health issues, per source. The current plan is to return to the bench next week.

"We all want great players, we all want the best teams, but with that comes a lot of pressure as well. And what Ty Lue has had to go through this year with that team, with the trades and the injuries and the pressure, it's unrelenting," Denver coach Michael Malone said. "So I hope that he gets healthy and is able to get back in time for the playoffs and help that team win as many games as possible."

Lue spent the second half of Cleveland's victory in Chicago on Saturday in the locker room because of an illness, the second time this season he left a game because he wasn't feeling well. The former NBA guard also sat one out against Chicago at home in December.

Associate head coach Larry Drew coached the second half of Saturday's game, the finale of a six-game, 11-day road trip. Cleveland is back home to host Milwaukee on Monday.

"We know how difficult these circumstances are for Coach Lue and we support him totally in this focused approach to addressing his health issues," general manager Koby Altman said.

Charlotte coach Steve Clifford also left his team to address his health this season. He took six weeks off. Medical tests revealed that the 56-year-old Clifford did not have any internal problems, but the doctor's diagnosis was the coach was suffering from severe sleep deprivation.